The present invention relates generally to an arrow rest assembly for use with a compound bow. More particularly, the present invention relates to a push-away arrow rest which provides for a more accurate, reliable and unimpeded discharge of an arrow from a compound bow.
Archery and shooting with bows and arrows have existed since prehistoric times. The first bows were long bows of wood with integral upper and lower arms and one string connected to the ends of the arms for knocking an arrow thereto while the thumb of one hand supported the arrow at the handgrip location. For many years archery has been one of the competitions in the Olympic games, recognizing the worldwide acceptance of archery as a past and present life necessity and sport.
During the late 1960""s and early 1970""s, archery underwent radical changes in equipment. Long bows and/or recurve bows were replaced by the compound bow invented by Holless Allen. The compound bow utilizes a combination of pulleys, eccentric wheels and cables that provide increased arrow speed and improved accuracy. This combination produces a much enhanced mechanical advantage not present in traditional archery equipment.
Other improvements added to the compound bow included the use of hand held mechanical release devices that improve efficiency and accuracy accounting for unbelievable record scores that are being shot today. Various designs of arrow rests have also been added to the compound bow. An arrow rest supports the arrow as it is placed into the shelf region of the bow. The arrow rest further supports the arrow as it is drawn back after being nocked to the bow string, and further supports the arrow as it moves forward and is launched away from the bow.
Arrows, that are shot by bows, have also improved. However, arrows still have vanes or fletching opposite the tip end and adjacent the nock. The vanes or feathers give the arrow aerodynamic advantage and encourage a rotational flight. Compound bows today can send an arrow traveling up to three hundred feet or more per second. This significant transfer of energy to the arrow from the compound bow induces great amount of paradox to the arrow that contorts and flexes the arrow shaft both in vertical and horizontal planes. These undesirable and prevalent contortions and gyrations cause the arrow shaft, along with its corresponding vanes or fletching, to collide with the arrow rest components upon release of the bow string. Such detrimental action has an affect on the accuracy of the arrow.
Arrow rests have been over the years designed to minimize contact with the fletching or vanes of the arrow as well as the arrow itself as it leaves the bow at phenomenal speeds. Support prongs actually holding the arrows have been minimized. Troncoso U.S. Pat. No. 3,939,584 discloses a traditional arrow rest and does not move out of the way of the arrow. Also numerous attempts have been made to remove the arrow rest from its launching position as the arrow and its vanes or fletching pass thereby. Once such design of a pulldown fall-away arrow rest uses the recoil or inertia of the bow upon release to move a small counter weight that trips and causes a spring loaded devise to fall and lay down on the arrow rest shelf as the bow is shot. This device requires the arrow rest be cocked before each and every shot. The Babington U.S. Pat. No. 3,504,659 shows an arrow rest that has such a cocked position and also shows a connection with the bow string activating and controlling the arrow rest. The following patent numbers, including Savage U.S. Pat. No. 5,490,492, Piersons U.S. Pat. No. 6,044,832, Sartain U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,263, Karolian U.S. Pat. No. 5,394,858 and Pittman U.S. Pat. No. 5,365,912, show arrow rests that are lifted up by way of connection to the tuning cables into the firing or arrow support position as the bow is drawn back. The Angeloni U.S. Pat. No. 5,415,154 shows a drop-away arrow rest that is mechanically interlocked with the cable slide which receives the tuning cables and is mounted on the cable guard.
Today, all of the current fall-away or drop-away arrow rest are similarly attached to the cable guard, cable slide, the cross over timing cables or the bow string itself. Most of these mechanical connections attached to these moving components use rubber tubing, elastic or synthetic string materials or mechanical links which are subject to wear and tear and eventual failure or malfunction of the arrow rest. These fall-away or drop-away arrow rests require that the bow string be drawn and pulled before the arrow support assembly rises and is pulled to an erect position in relation to the shelf and in support of the arrow in preparation of the shot. One significant problem with this design is that the arrow shaft tends to fall off the shelf or arrow rest assembly which frustrates the archer as he is concentrating on the target and preparing for the shot. There are also exists to some degree interference with the return path of the cable slide, bow string and tuning cables.
There is a need for an improved arrow rest that remains in a ready shooting position as the arrow is loaded into the bow and the bow string is drawn back in preparation for launching. Such an arrow rest should not attach to tuning cables, cables slide or the bow string of a compound bow nor interfere with the return path of the bow string, cables or cable slide. Such an improved arrow rest should be available as a retrofit or add-on to any compound bow.
A push-away arrow rest for use with a compound bow includes an arrow launcher assembly biased to an upward arrow support position. A push rod assembly is biased away from the arrow launcher assembly and is adapted to push the arrow launcher assembly downward out of the way of an arrow and its fletching after the arrow is released from the bow. The push rod assembly is struck by the tuning cables which in turns strikes a rotator lever connected to the arrow launcher assembly which pushes the arrow rest down and out of the way of the arrow and its fletching within micro seconds.
A principal object and advantage of the present invention is that the improved drop-away rest remains in a ready shooting position unlike any of the other drop-away or fall-away arrow rests which improves the archers concentration.
Another object and advantage of the present invention that the arrow rest remains in its ready shooting position which minimizes the tendency of the arrow shaft to fall off the arrow rest assembly as the archery is concentrating on the target.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is that the push-away arrow rest does not attach to the bow string, tuning cable or cable slide as to interfere with their return path or create wear and tear or failure on these mechanical components of the compound bow.
Another object and advantage of the improved arrow rest is that it is available as a retrofit or an add-on unit to the compound bow.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is that the push-away arrow rest returns and resets itself to the ready shooting position after each and every shot.
Another object and advantage of the present arrow rest is that it is fully adjustable to accurately tune for a perfect shot of any arrow as well as fully adaptable for any compound bow with further adjustability as to tension and bias.